Not only is the U.S. economy in shambles, violent crime is at an all-time high and new federal statistics show that 2011 saw the biggest increase in criminal activity in nearly two decades with a large boost in the rate of “violent victimizations” for whites.

The rate of violent crime increased by a whopping 17% last year, according to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), marking the biggest jump since 1993. Property crimes also went up 11% last year. That means that in 2011 there were nearly 6 million violent victimizations and more than 17 million property victimizations, according to the DOJ figures.

In an apparent effort to downplay the alarming statistics the feds explain in a press release that the swelling of violent crime is due to an increase in the number of aggravated and simple assaults. There was no “statistically significant change” in the number of more serious crimes such as rapes, sexual assaults and robberies, according to the explanation.

The Obama Administration also asserts that the 2011 increase appears so large because crime rates were at historically low levels in 2010. The bottom line is that violent crime is growing at a much faster rate than the economy. One liberal news website quoted renowned criminal justice professor saying that the stagnant economy may be driving more Americans to break the law. It’s part of “larger problems,” the expert says.

Here are more unsettling statistics buried deep in the DOJ’s new crime report; there has been a large increase in the rate of violent victimizations for whites, Hispanics and younger people. That means white non-Hispanics and Hispanics experienced an increase in violent victimization rates, while the rate for black non-Hispanics was stable, according to the DOJ stats.

Additionally, crime rate in the suburbs is growing much faster than in the cities or rural areas, the government figures show. In 2011 suburbanites suffered a 20% in violent victimizations, according to the DOJ. Keep in mind that the feds admit in their report that the figures are probably much higher since only about 50% of violent victimizations were reported to police.